Kanye West makes legal move against rival lawyers

Kanye West had a mansion in Malibu. But Tony Saxon, who worked on the property as a project manager, sued the artist in 2023 for labor violations, nonpayment of services, and disability discrimination.

Now, Ye is taking a counter-legal action, alleging that his former aide was wrong to place a lien on his former property.

In his lawsuit, which he filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, the Chicago rap-star also took aim at West Coast Trial Lawyers, a law firm that represented Tony.

The complaint states that "Tony wrongfully placed an invalid lien on the property while simultaneously launching an aggressive publicity campaign designed to pressure Ye, chill prospective transactions, and extract payment on disputed claims already being litigated in court."

By "aggressive publicity campaign," Ye refers to a statement Ronald Zambrano, his ex-project manager, made to Business Insider, “If someone wants to buy Kanye’s Malibu home, they will have to deal with us first. That sale cannot happen without Tony getting paid first.”

“These statements were designed to create public pressure and to interfere with the Plaintiffs’ ability to sell and finance the Property by falsely conveying that Defendants held an adjudicated, enforceable right to block a transaction and divert sale proceeds,” the lawsuit reads.

A mechanic's lien — which Tony placed a month after, when Ye listed the mansion for sale — is a total of $1.8 million, stopping the owner from selling the property  until an unpaid contractor, laborer, or supplier is compensated. A foreclosure sale of property can also occur if the party is still not paid.

But last year, the Los Angeles Superior Court ruled in favour of the Donda hitmaker, awarding him attorney's fees and removing the lien from the property.

It is worth noting that Kanye bought the Malibu mansion in 2021 for $57.3 million. But he sold it for $21 million in 2024, a huge loss.